


When We Crashed (and fell, and burned, and then forgot that anything happened)

by ShadesofSilver



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Asgore Needs a Hug, Denial, Everyone Has Issues, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, F/M, Forgiveness, Genocide, Guilt, Help my brain, Mentions of Character Death, Night Terrors, Papyrus Has Issues, Papyrus Knows More Than He Lets On, Papyrus Needs A Hug, Papyrus Remembers Resets, Resets, Sans Has Issues, Sans Needs A Hug, Sans is aware of Resets, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Hatred, So Do Undyne and Alphys, Suicidal Thoughts, Temporary Character Death, Toriel needs a hug, give them hugs, netaphorical hugs, this isn't very happy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-20
Updated: 2017-07-07
Packaged: 2018-11-16 10:00:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11250828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadesofSilver/pseuds/ShadesofSilver
Summary: It started as a normal day.It was the last normal day (or was it, because it just kept repeating over and over).How far can they fall before they hit the bottom and shatter into a million pieces?How long before the damage is irreparable?How many people hide behind their smiles?





	1. Just Another Day

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Yessica](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yessica/gifts).

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Since I can't really do anything for SIAB or DD right now (the writers block I have is forcibly ripping my brain in half), I did this so that I feel like I'm getting something done. If anyone has a request, I really could use ideas. 
> 
> The ideas in this were strongly based off of papyrus-knows and sharada-n on tumblr. Go check them out!

It was just another day.

Papyrus grinned to himself as he finished his latest batch of spaghetti, sliding the already-filled bowl onto the table and putting the rest of the food into a plastic container for later. Papyrus himself had already finished his breakfast, and the oatmeal-crusted bowl was in the sink and ready to be washed. 

He had quite a bit to do today. He had training with Undyne and normal sentry duties, and he had to recalibrate the electricity maze and the Gauntlet of Deadly Terror. But first, he needed to make sure that his brother actually got up instead of napping the day away. 

Moving to stand at the base of the stairs, he took a deep breath. “SANS! GET UP, YOU LAZYBONES! YOU’RE GOING TO BE LATE!”

A muffled groan sounded from behind Sans’s door, followed by a thump. “comin’, pap.”

Papyrus sighed to himself, smiling anyways. It was a day like any other. 

 

It was just another day. 

Sans blinked up at the dark ceiling from his place on the bedroom floor, still tangled in his sheets from last night. 

He debated the pros and cons of just staying on the floor and going back to sleep, but quickly cast off the thought. Papyrus was waiting downstairs. Standing up, he gathered up the sheets into a messy ball and tossed it onto the mattress. When he went back to sleep, he could just rearrange them again… or he could just sleep on the mattress. It didn't really matter. 

Trudging towards his door, he took one glance back at his room. Somehow, the Annoying Dog had gotten into the trash tornado again while he was sleeping, and was whirling around inside. It looked like it was having fun, so he left it and went out onto the balcony. Papyrus was waiting by the door. 

“mornin’, bro,” he called, heading down the stairs. 

Yeah. It was a day like any other. 

 

It was just another day. 

Undyne greeted Papyrus at the door, taking the bone that he offered and leaving it in the drawer with all of the others that he had given her. Like always, the tall skeleton was full of enthusiasm for their “training,” sockets somehow sparkling and SOUL buzzing with magic. 

Undyne had to admire his energy. His optimism and passion wasn't something you saw everyday. 

Speaking of monsters with passion, she should probably call Alphys later. Maybe she would have more of that human history!

Shaking off the thoughts of the cute ~~haha what are you talking about she didn't say anything~~ scientist, she turned back to Papyrus and slammed her fist down on the table. 

“ALRIGHT, SENTRY! READY TO START YOUR TRAINING?!”

It was a day like any other. 

 

It was just another day. 

Alphys jumped a bit when her phone started buzzing, signaling an incoming call. When she pulled it out of the pocket of her lab coat, Undyne’s number was displayed on the screen. 

She couldn't help the excited squeal, feeling heat rise to her face. Within a heartbeat, the call was accepted and she was holding the phone up to her ear. “H-hey, Undyne!”

“Hey, Alph. Uh…” Undyne trailed off awkwardly. “How's the… weather?”

...What?

“It’s pretty hot… here… I'm in Hotland, so…”

She could have sworn that she heard Undyne on the other end while she was saying that. “Oh my stars, I'm stupid. Why am I asking her about the weather?!” Suddenly, she cleared her throat. “Yeah. Uh. So. Wanna come over to my place later to watch some more of that human history??”

Alphys felt herself flush some more before stuttering out a reply. It was a day like any other. 

 

It was just another day. 

Asgore hummed quietly as he filled up his watering can, watching the small stream of water fall from the faucet. Once the can felt heavy enough, he shut off the water and headed back over to the throne room. The fake light of the Underground filtered in through the windows, casting the golden flowers in a soft luminance. Asgore knew the light cycle well enough to recognize the time as late afternoon. 

Careful not to crush any of the delicate blossoms, he moved towards the center of the room and began to water the flower patches with a steadiness that came from years upon years of practice. The petals were a smooth buttery color that shimmered in threads of rainbow hue where the light hit them. He knew from experience that they felt like silk (and made great tea). The leaves were a glossy, deep emerald that reflected the light, as opposed to absorbing it like the petals did. Wherever he stepped, the fragrant scent that was characteristic of the golden flowers drifted up into the air. 

Maybe Undyne or Gerson would stop by today. Asgore hadn't seen Undyne for a few days, and Gerson for a week. Perhaps he would make another round to the schools of the Underground with another lesson?

Asgore kept humming as he made his way across the garden, planning out the rest of the day, because it was a day like any other. 

 

It was just another day. 

Toriel sighed to herself as she made her way through the Ruins, checking each puzzle as she passed and making sure that each one was working properly. The glass bowl was still full of distinctly un-licorice-flavored candy, the spike path was functioning smoothly, and the plaques on the wall were still legible. The flowers at the drop were thriving, with blossoms the size of her head and healthy green leaves. 

As she headed back to her home, she had a thought. It was the same thought that she had every day, perhaps twice a day if she was bored. 

Perhaps a human would fall today. 

Toriel shook off the thought as soon as it entered her mind. It wouldn't do any good to keep hoping for a human, when they would inevitably leave the Ruins and meet their death. Even if it would ease her loneliness for, at the least, a few hours. 

When Toriel reached her house, the first thing she did was walk down the stairs into her “basement” and towards the Ruins exit. The person on the other side always showed up around the time she finished checking the drop. 

She arrived at the set of double doors to the sound of a baritone voice. “knock knock?”

Thank the stars. She hadn't missed him. “Who's there?”

There was a soft exhale from the other side. “a broken pencil.”

“A broken pencil who?”

“nevermind. it's pointless.”

Toriel broke into laughter, sitting down and leaning against the door and enjoying the sound of similar laughter behind it. 

It was a day like any other. 

 

Soon after, the child fell.


	2. Dusty Retribution

Toriel smiled warmly at the small child as they entered her home. She was impressed. They had managed to get through the entirety of the Ruins without her guidance, not gaining a scratch and looking entirely unfazed. 

~~Not unfazed, but some emotion that was crueler and colder, an emotion that didn't belong on a child’s face.~~

A faded red ribbon hung from their hair, and Toriel felt the sting of old pain at the sight of it. 

“Do you smell that? Surprise! It is a butterscotch-cinnamon pie. I thought we might celebrate your arrival.”

The small child didn't respond, face eerily blank. Toriel pushed down the twinge of apprehension in her gut. They were a child. A child who seemed to be unhealthily thin and who had an old scar on their cheek where the bandage had used to be. 

A child with pale grey dust covering their hands. Toriel had seen enough monsters fall down and enough monsters die in the War to recognize their remains. The child must have killed one of the monsters in the Ruins.

Still, it was fine. Whenever a child fell down the mountain, they would often be scared; Toriel had witnessed some of them lash out at the monsters who attacked them, not realizing their strength. However, after the first encounter, they would stop, realizing what they had done. Even the SOUL of Kindness had lashed out. 

“Here, I have another surprise for you,” Toriel said quickly, heading into the hallway. 

As Toriel led the fallen human to their new room, fear began to well up in her chest. 

How long would it be before this one left her, too?

 

Papyrus smiled nervously as a small silhouette began to approach through the fog, phalanges curling into the fabric of his gloves. “HALT, HUMAN!” 

They took another step forwards. Papyrus still couldn't make out their features through the mist, but their outline was stark against the white of the snow. “HEY, QUIT MOVING WHILE I’M TALKING TO YOU!”

The human stopped ten feet away, and he sighed inwardly in relief. “I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE SOME THINGS TO SAY.” He took a deep breath, trying to stop his hands from shaking and widening his grin. “FIRST OFF: YOU’RE A FREAKING WEIRDO!” 

Undyne had always told him to be honest. 

“NOT ONLY DO YOU NOT LIKE PUZZLES. BUT THE WAY YOU SHAMBLE ABOUT FROM PLACE TO PLACE… THE WAY YOUR HANDS ARE ALWAYS COVERED IN DUSTY POWDER. IT FEELS… LIKE YOUR LIFE IS GOING DOWN A DANGEROUS PATH.”

As Papyrus continued, the human kept approaching. Their SOUL radiated harming intent-- he could feel it. It took all of his self-control to resist the urge to back away and flee. If he could convince the human to stop, the rest of the Underground would be safe. Or, at the very least, he could buy some time for everyone else. 

“I SEE YOU ARE APPROACHING. ARE YOU OFFERING A HUG OF ACCEPTANCE? WOWIE!! MY LESSONS ARE ALREADY WORKING!! I, PAPYRUS, WELCOME YOU WITH OPEN ARMS!”

As he entered the Encounter, the fog cleared out of the ring and revealed the grey dust covering the humans’s hands, and the single glove covering one of them. A bandana, the one he had seen last in the store, was tied around their head. 

He SPAREd them. 

They attacked. 

Everything was fuzzy around the edges. Fresh dust spread across the snow. 

“I… I PROMISE…”

And the world went dark. 

 

Undyne’s eyes closed as Monster Kid fled the bridge, fist clenching around her spear. “... heh… ‘It’s nothing’...” She could feel herself starting to dissolve, pain flaring from the gash in her torso. 

Even with just one hit… 

The human facing her smirked, a dusty ballet shoe still pointed at her tauntingly. There was malice and hatred pouring from them. 

The killing intent behind that single blow had cut through her HP faster than she could believe, that one strike draining her down to zero like her armor wasn't even there. With a _notebook._

The Underground didn't stand a chance. 

Her voice shook. “Papyrus… Alphys… ASGORE…

“Just like that. I…

“I've failed you.”

But as her body drifted away onto the wind… something in her erupted. 

She would not fail. 

Her dust recollected itself. 

“No… My body… It feels like it's splitting apart. Like any instant… I'll scatter into a million pieces.”

Something burned deep in her SOUL, something unstable and dangerous and _powerful._

And in that moment, she saw. 

The murderer in front of her wasn't a human. It was something else entirely, something that wasn't just a threat to monsters or the Underground. It was something that could destroy _everything._

And it would, unless Undyne stopped it. 

A fierce pounding began to echo in her ears. It resonated through her entire body, filling her with resolution. It cried out with hope and fear and the desire to live, the desire to hold on through everything that this creature threw at them. 

“For the sake of the whole world… I, UNDYNE, will strike you down!”

That burning feeling flooded through her SOUL and body, rearranging the dust and magic into something new and unstoppable. 

Undyne grinned at the murderer. “You're gonna have to try a little harder than THAT.”

 

Alphys ran across her lab, typing commands into her phone to be sent across the Undernet with one hand and carrying a stack of papers with the other. Slamming the papers down onto her desk, she finished with her post-- a list of instructions regarding the evacuation of Hotland. The papers were filled with the mechanics of every trap from Snowdin to New Home. 

There was an empty hole somewhere inside of her that was slowly filling with ice. 

Tears pricked at her eyes, but she forced them back and began typing out a list of instructions for the residents of New Home. She tried to ignore the monitor displaying Waterfall, where a new pile of dust lay on the bridge. 

Suddenly, Mettaton rolled into the lab. “ALPHYS, DARLING-- THE HUMAN HAS CROSSED INTO HOTLAND. YOU MUST GO.”

Alphys froze, sliding her phone into her lab coat and powering off her computer. Something cold twisted inside of her SOUL, urging her to stay and take her revenge on the human. For Undyne. 

“ALPHYS.” Hands clamped down on her shoulders, pushing her towards the door. “THERE IS NO TIME TO WASTE.” Mettaton’s voice snapped her out of it. She had to evacuate everyone else. 

“R-right,” she muttered, wrenching herself from the robot’s grip and hurrying towards the door. 

She heard the entrance to the lab open a heartbeat after she exited. 

 

Sans grinned humorlessly at the kid as they shambled towards him, magic itching to be released. “heya.”

They stopped, flashing a cruel smile of their own. They had a different weapon than he remembered-- a steel gardening knife, as opposed to the plastic toy knife, glove, ballet shoe, notebook, or frying pan that they had been using as they massacred the Underground. A golden heart locket hung from their neck. 

**“Chara”**

**LV 19  
HP 92/92**

**AT 36 (99) EXP: 50000  
DF 4 (99) NEXT: 49999**

**WEAPON: Real Knife  
ARMOR: The Locket**

**GOLD: 3427 KILLS: 105**

***Here to end it.  
Verdict: Guilty**

“you've been busy, huh?” He paused. “so, i’ve got a question for ya. do you think even the worst person can change…? that everyone can be a good person, if they just try?”

Sans chuckled when he didn't get a response other than the human palming the knife in their hand. “well, here's a better question.” He felt his eyelights flicker out. “do you wanna have a bad time? ‘cause if you take another step forward… you are REALLY not going to like what happens next.”

The human stepped closer, the gleam of ruby peeking out from their squinted eyelids. Sans sighed inwardly, shrugging. “welp. sorry, old lady. this is why i never make promises.”

He extended outward with his magic, dragging the human into an Encounter. The hall went black. 

Amber light streamed through the windows of the Last Corridor, stark against the shadows formed by the looming pillars. Dark and light. “it's a beautiful day outside,” Sans mused thoughtfully. “birds are singing, flowers are blooming. on days like these, kids like you…

“ _should be burning in hell._ ”

His Judgement eye flickered. 

Red turned to dark blue. 

And karma struck. 

 

Asgore frowned at the sheer terror on the flower’s face, at the tears streaming from its eyes. “You have to run, they're coming, they're on their way right now,” it wailed. “They can't be stopped, they'll kill both of us!” Then, the flower’s eyes settled on something behind Asgore, and it blanched. It vanished before he could respond. 

“Curious,” Asgore murmured to himself and to whoever was behind him quietly. “I've never seen a plant… cry before.”

Turning around, Asgore’s gaze fell on a small child in a blue and purple striped sweater.

“... huh?”

A dusty knife was clenched in their fist, and a familiar golden locket hung from their neck. 

The locket of his deceased child. 

“You must be the one that flower just warned me about,” he realized. “Howdy!”

“Erm… What kind of monster are you…? Sorry, I cannot tell.” And he had never seen any creature that held the same hate in their eyes as the one standing before him. 

He chuckled nervously. “Well, we can always-”

The world went dark as the child dragged him into a confrontation. He was stunned-- he had not seen an Encounter started by a human since the Great War. 

The child leered at him, brandishing the knife. There was something… almost familiar about the way they stood. 

“Now, now,” he tried to placate them. “There's no need to fight. Why not settle this… over a nice cup of tea?”

Behind his cloak, his paw closed around his trident-

And pain blossomed as the child lunged forwards and slashed their knife across his chest. They leapt backwards as soon as the blow was dealt, grinning widely in triumph. Asgore felt his HP drop to the single digits. 

Impossible. 

Falling to his knees, Asgore stared at the small child in disbelief. “Why… You…”

A ring of white bullets surrounded him and struck. 

And his body dissolved over the flowers. 

 

As the world ended, the first fallen human and the eighth made a deal. To answer for their sins and bring the world back, one would sell their SOUL to the other. 

Crimson eyes narrowed in satisfaction as the agreement was reached. 

The twin set shadowed with doubt. 

Determination flared like the dying ember of a fire. 

And time reset for the four-hundred and sixty-ninth time. 

 

“Howdy!”


	3. A New Way of Looking at Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This so it, people! The last chapter. Enjoy.

It was just another day. 

Toriel sighed to herself as she swept through the Ruins, watering can in hand and robes scratching against the fallen leaves. Whenever she passed, the smaller monsters watched silently, shrinking back ever so slightly as she made her way towards the flower patch. 

Toriel knew that they were afraid. And somewhere inside of her, the angry part of her SOUL that still held festering wounds from the deaths of her eight children and her husband’s betrayal and the rage she felt for all of the monsters who just stood by and let those humans die, a bitter voice whispered, Good. 

Finally, she reached the small bed of golden flowers that lay below the drop from the top of the mountain. The blossoms had recovered from when the last child had fallen on them, seeming to shine with their own light. But what Toriel truly valued was the body buried below. 

“Hello, Chara,” she murmured as she began to sprinkle water over the golden petals. “How are you today?” She asked the question every day, despite knowing all too well that her adopted child would never answer her. 

The flower patch had sprung up shortly after she had buried Chara below the drop-- seeds had clung to their clothes from the Surface, eventually forming something like a grave marker for the first fallen human. It seemed fitting-- the flowers sprung from Chara’s remains had saved the children who fell later from injury. 

Quietly, diligently, Toriel nurtured the golden flowers in preparation for the next human to fall. 

 

 

It was just another day. 

Papyrus glanced over at the batch of spaghetti that was lying on the counter before serving some of it into a bowl with practiced ease, deftly catching any noodles that caught on the bowl’s rim. The rest he slid into a plastic container, placing it into an empty spot in the fridge. Picking up the bowl carefully, he set the still-warm spaghetti on the table where Sans always say. 

Maybe Sans would actually eat it this time. 

Why would he? a spiteful voice murmured in his head. He obviously doesn't think you're smart enough to notice.

Papyrus glanced towards the door on the balcony before turning back to the kitchen counter. It didn't matter. It never did. 

It didn't matter when Sans faked a smile, telling Papyrus that all of his friends had “gone on vacation.” Did he really think so little of him? That he would fall for that?

It didn't matter when Sans kept him in the dark, singing false praises and belittling him behind his back. 

It didn't even matter when Sans refused to tell him the truth about the RESETs, when Papyrus ever-so-carefully guided conversation towards the topic. 

‘it's nothin’, bro.’

‘you're so great, bro.”

‘it doesn't matter, bro.”

The Great Papyrus. 

_What a joke_.

Shaking off the thought, Papyrus turned towards the balcony and took an unnecessarily deep breath, preparing himself for the script. “SANS! GET UP, YOU LAZYBONES! YOU’RE GOING TO BE LATE!”

There was the muffled groan and thud before silence fell once again-- exactly four seconds before the response, as it always was. “comin’, paps.”

Papyrus didn't miss the defeated way his brother said it, proof of the taxing effects of the repeats. Because Papyrus missed a lot less than everyone expected.

But it didn't matter, because today would be the same as any other run. Today, the script would run through just as it always did, and then the world would turn back to zero. 

Taking another breath, Papyrus plastered a grin on his face just in time as Sans shuffled down the stairs. 

Maybe this run would be better. That's all he could hope for. 

 

 

Sans grinned after Papyrus as the tall skeleton left him at his station, red scarf billowing behind him as he raced off into the snowy forest. As soon as the younger was out of sight, Sans pulled out the journal he had snagged from the machine in the basement and began flipping through the pages. Deja-vu slapped him in the face as he skimmed entry after entry. 

run #3: kid passive. no kills. barrier broken. 

run #17: kid neutral. 9 kills upon exit. undyne killed. mtt killed. asgore killed. souls gone. 

run #28: kid aggressive. 21 kills upon exit. tori killed. pap killed. undyne killed. mtt killed. alphys missing. headed to last corridor.

Eventually, the already-messy writing turned into nearly-unintelligible scribbles, desperately scratched onto the paper. 

run #47: pacifist run. 

run #68: 15 kills at door. neutral. only undyne and asgore killed. alphys missing. 

run #102: 21 kills at door. no mercy. everyone killed. headed to last corridor. 

run #170: no kills at door. pacifist. 

A list of notes on the kid’s actions and tells. Timing, script, fights. It was all written down. 

run #267: only asgore killed. neutral. 

run #325: no one killed at door. pacifist. 

The last entry. 

run #497: total kill on exit. no mercy. everyone killed. heading to last corridor.

No wonder Sans had woken up feeling empty. 

He checked the watch hidden under the sleeve of his jacket. The kid would be coming out of the doors in about ten minutes-- he just had to wait. 

He was patient. Waiting was easy. 

And eventually, the loud grating of rock on rock scraped through the air, and Sans knew that it was time. Shortcutting to the woods by the door, he hid. Moments later, a human kid crept out, a stick in hand and faded ribbon tied in their hair. No dust. 

“Chara”

LV 1  
HP 20/20

AT 0 (0) EXP: 0  
DF 0 (3) NEXT: 10

WEAPON: Stick  
ARMOR: Faded Ribbon

GOLD: 36 KILLS: 0

*Despite everything, it's still them.  
Verdict: Innocent

As they inspected the camera-bush, Sans quickly jotted down, run #498: no kills on exit.

Welp. It was time to start again. 

Quietly moving through the trees, Sans positioned himself where he wouldn't be found and focused on the branch lying in the middle of the path. 

Just another run. 

 

 

Undyne stared at the black and white ivory keys of her piano. A blue rag lay on top of the instrument, dusty and dirty from the half hour of careful cleaning that she had done. Her fingers were poised to play. Her sheet music was displayed on the stand. 

And yet, no music came out. 

Hesitating, the captain shifted on the bench, gently running her fingers along the keys. Something felt wrong, deep in her SOUL. She willed the off-feeling to flow to her hands, her fingers, to let all of the negativity and stress and anger and fear just… leave. 

And it left through the haunting melody that her fingers wrought through the piano, feeling the crescendos and diminuendos and chords strike something in her. The song was regret, anger, despair, and a desperate wish for life that wasn't granted. It was grief and rage and hopelessness that left her a pile of dust in the wind. It was an empty feeling that ached inside of her. 

The notes dipped down into a slower, duller tone as her emotions began to run dry. But Undyne didn't dare stop, feeling herself be swept away by the music, fingers numb as they danced across the keys, eyes closed as she let herself go for the first time in three years. Letting herself drop into open air. 

Finally, when the melody had died away, Undyne grounded herself with the silence and opened her eyes. 

The next few minutes were mechanical and instinctual. 

Putting the water on to boil (deja-vu). 

Pulling the Golden Flower Tea from her cupboard, feeling something twinge in her as she stared down at the box. 

Pouring the steaming water into a cup and letting one of the tea bags steep. 

Sitting down at the table with the mug in her hands, letting the warmth from the drink comfort her. 

And everything was quiet. 

 

 

Alphys woke up feeling nauseous. The sheets of her bed were messed up and her pillow was laying on the floor, next to most of the covers. Horror and revulsion crawled in her SOUL. Whispers seemed to echo in her ears, the remnants of a nightmare. Something in her screamed in fear-- something was wrong, something was horribly wrong, she was in danger, everyone was in danger, Undyne, she, dust, determination, nonononono-

Her breaths were short and labored as she hyperventilated, curling up on the bed and trying to block out the white noise. Her SOUL pounded in her chest like it was going to rip through her scales. Her vision tunneled. 

She never quite knew what to do when a panic attack hit. All she could do was ride it out and wait for it to end. 

It took nearly a half hour for it to end. 

When it was finally over, she slowly uncurled from her ball and took several deep breaths. One hand snatched her phone from the nearby table, numbly unwinding the wire and putting the headphones on. Music began streaming through the speakers-- one of the songs from Mew Mew Kissy Cutie. Every so gradually, her locked muscles began to relax at the familiarity and comfort that the song brought. 

But the dread remained, a creeping fear that curled its claws around her SOUL and squeezed tight, suffocating her. A sense of wrongness, that something horrible had happened. 

Everything's fine, she told herself. Nothing's wrong. 

But eventually, she gave in, shutting off her music and going through her contacts. 

Undyne. 

Call. 

“Hey- uh, hey, Undyne,” she said nervously. 

Stars, what was she thinking? Undyne might have been sleeping or busy and she just called her for no reason other than this obscure fear, why was she so selfish, she-

“Hey, Alph!” Undyne responded cheerfully. Like she was happy to hear from Alphys. 

She was fine. 

Nothing bad had happened. 

It was going to be okay. 

 

 

Asgore woke up screaming. 

He woke up with blood on his fur and blood on his trident and blood staining the floor at the barrier room and a single, shining SOUL floating in front of him. 

He woke up in his bed with sweat covering his fur and tears blurring his vision and a bitter taste in his mouth. 

He woke up with the screams of children ringing in his ears, full of terror and pain and grief and hopelessness. 

He woke up with those same emotions churning in his SOUL. 

Asgore’s cry choked off into a strangled, small, wretched sound that died into silence soon after. He thanked the stars that he lived alone. Sitting up, he leaned his head against the wall and took a deep breath. 

He could still feel their blood, clotted in his paws. 

He could still see the fear in their eyes. 

He could still feel the shaking of their SOULs as his trident dealt the final blows. 

_Murderer_. 

His wife had been right. He should have listened to her. But instead, she was gone and he was left with the deaths of six innocents resting upon his crown. 

Asgore got out of his bed and slowly made his way across the bedroom, opening the door with a soft click and heading down the hallway and stairs. His bare feet made barely a sound on the stones as he walked the familiar corridors, the scenery of New Home and then the pillars and stained glass windows of the Last Corridor, the Judgement Hall, familiar to the point of uninteresting to Asgore. He passed the throne room, with the sprawling mass of golden flowers, and then entered the corridor where the Barrier blocked the way to the Surface. 

The SOUL canisters rose from the floor, each glowing softly with colored light. 

Patience had fallen first, a quiet girl with brown hair and freckles and a SOUL the color of Waterfall’s echo flowers. Soft-spoken and curious, it was a wonder that she made it all the way to the castle. She had been young-- maybe ten or eleven. And his attacks had cut through her with jarring swiftness as she refused to dodge. Convinced that, given time, she could heal his pain. As if she knew from personal experience. 

Kindness was next. A boy this time, with fair skin and amber eyes that matched the intensity of his green SOUL. Despite the old bruises and scratches on his face and arms that spoke louder than words, he had refused to hurt anyone. He had been the hardest to kill, reminding Asgore of his son. A few years older than Patience, trying to block his attacks with a frying pan. 

Then, Integrity. Another girl, dark-skinned, with curly black hair and a pure royal blue SOUL. She had been confident and unwavering in her choices, but with a compassionate streak that had led her through the Underground to find him. She had dodged his attacks, spinning and twirling like a dancer. Refusing to hurt him, despite everything that told her otherwise. It had taken him a long time to claim her SOUL. 

Justice had fallen several years after, yet another girl, with dark hair and hollow sapphire eyes and scars marking her neck. Her SOUL burned bright yellow, and she had been older than the three who came before. More wary than the others, but still not hurting anyone. She had gone on the offensive when she saw the SOUL canisters, but had still lost the fight. Her fight, perhaps, had been a bit easier for him, as she attacked first. It was over quickly. 

Perseverance had been the next to find him. A boy, with scratched up glasses and mousy brown hair, with a vibrant purple SOUL. Withstanding his attacks with a single-minded drive, he had been the one who nearly made Asgore quit. He had lasted the longest, reminding Asgore of everything that could have been. The silent boy with crooked fingers and bad eyes.

And finally, Bravery. The boy with a curly mess of black hair and a blazing orange SOUL, who had charged through the Underground without stopping to face him. He had been brash but virtuous, taking every attack that Asgore threw at him and still keeping that stubborn grin. Even as he died. He had been like a fire, burning bright even in the shadows that surrounded him from the Surface; Asgore had known by then why a human would travel to the mountain from which no one would return. 

The six SOULs cast dancing light on the white floor of the hall, still unchanged from the day they had been harvested. 

Asgore fell to his knees and wept.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty happy with how this turned out. I wanted to go deeper into the characters' feelings about the runs, the deja-vu, the aftermath of all of the RESETs, and everything else. Hope you enjoyed!

**Author's Note:**

> Edit as of July 27: I'm gifting this to Yessica because they're my primary inspiration for this.


End file.
